Helicopter kite



Feb. 26, 1963 R. TRIMBLE l 3,079,116

' HELICOPTER KITE Filed Jan. 26, 1962 'Y 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 46 Rm/EL',.TEZ/MBLE INVENToR.

il q 6 ATTORNEY Feb. 26, 1963 R. TRIMBLE l 3,079,116'

HELICOPTER KITE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 26, 1962 RHUEL TQ//v/B/ E INVEN TOR.

BY//MW/ "J l J3 A-rToxzN Ev l sheet material.

`tion. -upwardly extending strut at the end of the fuselage, and

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This invention relates to a helicopter kite and more particularly to atoy kite which is designed to simulate an operating helicopter withrotating supporting blades and rotating stabilizing blades on the tailin which the rotating supporting blades actually provide a substantialportion of the lift for supporting the weight of the kite in Hight andthe tail rotor actually helps to stabilize the kite during flight.

Various devices which may be classified as wind driven helicopter kiteshave been devised which utilize wind driven rotary blades for providingsupport in a captive aerial device, but all of these devices haveutilized fixed rotating blades which do not provide the optimum speed ofrotation and lift sufficient to support a substantial weight andfurthermore, these devices have been relatively unstable in ilight andvery diicult to control.

iBriefly stated, one preferred embodiment of the present inventionconsists of a light weight elongated framework formed of wire or fromwood or plastic rod or tubing, preferably joined with removablepreformed plastic joints or glue. The fuselage portion may be triangular'or circular in cross-section or of any other desired shape and ispreferably covered with paper, plastic or some other similar lightweightsheet material. A landing gear preferably extends downwardly andoutwardly from the bottom of the fuselage and may, if desired, beprovided with stabilizing surfaces formed on the outer ends of thelanding gear struts with a suitable dihedral angle which may be adjustedby bending or forming the struts at a suitable angle to provide lateralstabilization for the craft during flight. A horizontal rotor mounted ona vertical shaft extending through the fuselage is preferably providedwith three or more rotor blades which are preferably of very lightconstruction having a skeleton framework covered with paper or otherlightweight fixed, but a relatively short inner portion `is pivotallymounted with stops to provide a limited degree of rota- `tion" about therotor shafts so that the inner portion tially parallel with the outersection of the blade as it starts Ito move forward in opposition to thewind direc- A small stabilizing tail rotor is provided on an preferablyhas two or more rotor blades each of which is pivotally mounted torotate approximately 180 be- `tween-two positions at right angles to thewind direction. AThe action of the tail rotor appears to improve4substantially the stability of the helicopter kite during captiveaerial flight, particularly when it is being flown in gusty windsof-varying velocity and direction. The

string or guy line which is used to ily the helicopter kite is slidablyattached to a resilient curved nosepiece which =forms a part of thefuselage and is connected to the V i `upper bearing for the main rotorshaft so that its position will vary depending on the wind velocity andapply a bending moment to the nosepiece thereby changing the plane ofrotation of the horizontal rotor blades with -respect to the fuselage tocompensate for the varying The outer ends of the rotor blades are arentO an automatic gear driven timing device which is moved ice very slowlyto its unlatching position by a striker on the main rotor blades whichstrikes and moves the gear one tooth for each revolution of the mainrotor and slowly moves a follower on a threaded shaft attached to thegear to a position where it releases a trigger mechanism for opening thecargo hatch. The storage space may contain a small folded parachute,flare or other simulated cargo.

One object of the present invention is to provide a helicopter kitewhich combines the lifting effect of box kite construction with thelifting effect of a wind driven horizontal'rotor, and also combines thestabilizing effects of dihedral surfaces on an Outrigger landing gearbelow the fuselage with a tail rotor which is also wind driven in avertical plane.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a helicopter kitewhich automatically adjusts its attitude with respect to the wind, toprovide an optimum lift and stability in accordance with the windvelocity.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a helicopterkite which will settle down on its own landing gear, stay in an uprightposition and then take olf, when desired, without the assistance of aperson holding it aloft in a dying position.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide ahelicopter kite which simultaes an operating, powered helicopter inbothits appearance and sound, since the arrangement of the horizontal andvertical rotors is similar to that of an actual helicopter, and thesound made by the moveable sections, as they move rapidly between theiralternate positions on the rotors, is similar, on a diminished scale, tothat of the motor and rotors of a helicopter in flight.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of this inventionwill be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood byreference to the following detailed description when considered inconnection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a pictorial view illustrating one preferred embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary detailed view on an enlarged scaleillustrating certain details of construction FIGURE`4 is a fragmentarydetailed sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of FIGURE 1.

FGURE 5 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 5`5 of FIGURE4.

FIGURE 6 is a side elevational view illustrating the change in attitudewith varying wind velocity.

FIGURE 7v is a fragmentary detailed View on an enlarged scaleillustrating the rotary mounting and movement ofthe moveable inner bladeportions.

D. FIGURE 8 isa 4detailed sectional view taken on the line` S-S ofFIGURE 7 and showing the moveable blade section in its upper positionwhere itis acted on by the Wind to drive the horizontal rotor.

. FIGURE 9 is a detailed sectional view taken on the line 9-9 of FIGURE7 and showing the moveable blade section in its feathered position goinginto the wind.

FIGURE l() is an enlarged view of the vertical tail rotor showing one ofthe blades in a driving position and the other two blades in a featheredposition.

FIGURE 11 is a detailed sectional View taken on the line 11-11 of FIGURE10.

FIGURE 12 is a detailed sectional View taken on the line 12-12 of FIGURE10.

FIGURE 13 is a detailed view of one modification of -3 the presentinvention showing lthe releasable cargo hatch and the automatic geardriven release mechanism; and

FIGURE 14 is a detailed sectional view taken on the line 14-14 of FIGURE13.

Referring now tothe drawings in detail and more particularly to thepictorial view of FIGURE 1, one preferred embodiment of 'the 'presentinvention consists of 'a fuselage having a skeleton framework formed oflightweight flexible rod or tubing such as wire or slender resilientstrips of wood, such as balsa, or plastic which may be bent intosubstantially the shapes as shown.

The skeleton framework of the fuselage preferably consists of twolongitudinal members 21 and 22 which 4taper towards the tail and arejoined together by gluing or preferably by a iitting which may be madeof lightweight rn'etal, such as aluminum, or plastic.

, y One of the longitudinal members, such as the lower 'member 22, maybe extended upwardly to form Vthe upward and rearward extending boom 24on which the tail rotor 25 is rotatably mounted in the bearing 26 whichmay also be a lightweight metal or plastic tting secured to the end ofthe boom 24. This bearing is shown in more vdetail on an enlarged scalein FIGURE 3 and has fa, short headed stub axle 27 extending therethroughwith a spacing sleeve 2S positioned between the 'fitting 26 and a disk29 which is secured to the end of the stub shaft 27.

The three shafts 31, 32 and 33 are rigidly secured to the outer face ofthe disk 29 and rotatably mount the three blades 34, 35 'and 36.' ,pEach of the shafts 31, 32 and 33 has a pair of stop .pins 'ondia'metrically opposite sides thereof and perpendicular to the plane ofrotation of the tail rotor (Le. perpendicular to the longitudinal axisof the helicopter kite). -YSince all of these pins are identical, theyhave all been indicated by the same numeral 37. The mode of operation ofthe tail rotor will be described in more detail in connection with theoperation of the helicopter kite 'and in conjunction with FIGURES l0, 1land l2 to be described subsequently.

The forward portion ofthe kite fuselage is formed by two transversetriangular memberswhich may also be 'formed of wire, tubing, plastic orthin strips of balsa wood 41 and 42 and two angular braces 43 and 44extend forwardfrom the transverse triangular member 42 and are joined atthe kforward end of the longitudinal member 21. This portion of thefuselage is preferably covered with vsome suitable fabric such aslightweight paper, 'silk span or a lightweight sheet plastic. The upperand lower longitudinal members 2l and 2 2 4are joined by a curvednosepiece 45 to which the flying line or cable 46 is attached by aslidable eye or guide 47 Ywhich performs a specific function to bedescribed subsequently in connection with FIGURE 6.

The upper and lower longitudinal members 21 and 22 are provided with theupper bearing member 51 and a lower bearing member 52 shown in FIGURES'2, 4 Vand whichmay be formed therein or secured thereto in Vanysuitable manner. These two rotary bearings 5 1 and 52rotatablyi'supportthe vertical axle 53 on which the horizontal rotor 54is mounted.

p The horizontal rotor 5 4 consists of a'disk 55 to which aire secur'edlthe three blade shafts 56, 57 and 58 which rotatably mount the threeinner drive blades 61, 62 and 63 as shown in `FIGURE l and FIGURE 7.

Each of these blades 61, 62 and 63 is `mounted for limited rotationon'its respective shaft between the upper pins 64 which extend at anangle of approximately 45 to the horizontal and another pin 65 whichlies in a substantially horizontal plane.

These inner moveable blade portions maypreferably be formed oflightweight plastic or balsa wood or may have a skeleton framework ofrod or tubing covered with vpaper or other suitable covering materialaThe outer tapered and ixed portions of the horizontal rotor blades 66,67 and 63 are rigidly secured to the blade shafts 56, 57 and 5S and mayconsist of a skeleton framework formed of lightweight rod or tubingcovered with paper, thin sheet plastic or other suitable covering, suchas silk span, to form an airfoil section which provides substantial liftto the helicopter kite.

As shown in the enlarged detailed View of FIGURE 7, the outer fixedportions of the horizontal rotor blades have both a leading and trailingedge portion which is rigidly formed by the skeleton framework, such asthe rods 71 and 72, on the blade 67. However, if desired, the rod 72forming the rigid trailing edge may be eliminated, so that the tlexiblecovering material 73 is left loose and flexible at the trailing edge andis merely se'- cured to the blade shaft 67, so that the blade willreadily adjust itself to varying wind velocity and direction.

FIGURES 8 and 9 show 'the relative positions of the ixed outer bladeportion 67 and the moveable inner blade 62 with an arrow indicating thewind direction. In FIG- URE 8 the blade 62 has been moved into the upperposition against the stop pin 64 for driving the horizontal rotor, andin the second view of FIGURE 9, Where the blade 63 is feathered movinginto the wind, it is rotated downward into the lower position against alowerstop pin 63. This particular arrangement, as shown in FIG- URE 1and FIGURES 7 through 9, provides a counterl,clockwise rotation as seenfrom above for the horizontal rotor to provide lift for the helicopterkite.

FIGURES 10, 1l and 12 show the relative rpositions yof the moveableblades on the vertical tail rotor with the wind direction indicated bythe arrow imparting -a clockwise rotation to the tail rotor as seen fromthe right side `of the helicopter kite. The moveable blade 35 has justrotated into position against one of the diametrically opposite stoppins 37 to 'drive the tail rotor 25 in a clockwise direction, and theother two blades 34 and 36 are feathered in neutral positions betweenthe stop pins 37 as indicated in FIGURE Referring again to FIGURE 1, 4and 5, the landing gear consisting of the angularly bent strut 74 and 75is secured at its midpoint to the lower longitudinal member 22 andextend downward and outward from the fuselage. 'Ihe outriggers attachedto the outer ends of the strut 74 and 75 are bent upward and arepreferably covered with sheet material, such as paper or plastic, asindicated at 76 and 77 to provide stabilizing vsurfaces ata dihedralangle with respect to the fuselage. These stabilizing surfaces, 76 and'77, together with the tail rotor 25, stabilize vthe helicopter kitewhile in flight and help to prevent excessive yawing, rolling or pitchmovements particularly in gusty wind where the wind rapidly changesdirection and velocity.

The cargo carrying and releasing mechanism is illus-- trated in FIGURES13 and 14 as a modification of the structure shown in FIGURES 1 through12. In this par "ticularembodirnent the two longitudinal members 21 andi22 are provided with `bearing members 81 and 82 whichy rotatably supportthe horizontal rotor axle 53 as well as: the threaded gear shaft 83 onwhich is mounted agear' 84having teeth which are engaged once duringeachrevolutionof the main rotor by a pin 85 mounted on the disk Y55 ofthe rotor.

An internally threaded follower 86 is mounted-for vertical movement onthe threaded shaft 83 and is restrained `from rotational movement by theguide member 87 extending vertically parallel to the threadedvshaft 83.

The guide 87 also acts as a latch for the trigger mem- A'ber or release88 which is held in a notch in the guide `the weighted parachute 93,which is released after the gear S4 has rotated through sufficientrevolutions to move the follower 86 from the lower position to an upperposition where it engages the end of the trigger 88 so that it can bemoved down by the rubber band 89 to the lower position indicated bydotted lines and thereby release the cargo hatch 91 to open to theposition indicated by dotted lines in FIGURE 13. Obviously, the releasemechanism shown in FIGURE 13 can be set to release the cargo hatch 91and drop the cargo 93 at any predetermined interval of time after thehelicopter kite has taken to the air by varying the initial position ofthe follower 86 on the threaded shaft S3.

The helicopter kite of the present invention can be made up in kit formwherein all of the parts of the skeletal framework are to be glued orotherwise secured together, as by suitable miniature fittings made oflight- Weight metal or plastic, such as the fitting 23 in FIG- URE 2,and certain portions covered with sheet material.

Alternatively the whole helicopter kite may be partially pre-assembledso that it is only necessary to fold the parts out into the position asshown and attach the horizontal lifting rotor and the stabilizing tailrotor at the proper positions.

In the operation of the helicopter kite of the present invention, it isonly necessary to place the kite on the ground resting it on its landinggear with the strut 74 and 75 supporting it. As soon as the wind hasstarted the horizontal and vertical rotors the lift provided by thehorizontal rotor 54 and the box kite fuselage will lift the kite off theground and support it in the air. The .combined lift of the main rotorsand the fuselage will sustain flight even in a very light wind.

While the helicopter kite can be flown without the stabilizing tailrotor 25, the tail rotor 25 makes it much more stable in iiight andtends to prevent it from dipping, rolling and yawing, particularly invariable gusty winds where the wind velocity and direction changefrequently.

In an alternative form of the invention upper and lower longitudinalmembers 2 and 22 and curved nosepiece 45 are made of a more or lessflexible materfal. FIGURE 6 illustrates the operation of the kite whenit is so constructed. Under normal, light wind conditions, the liftexerted against the flying line or cable 46 is insufficient to overcomethe resilience of the body structure, and the horizontal rotors operatein substantially a horizontal plane. Under the iniiuence of strongerwinds, and therefore stronger lift forces, the flying line or cable 46tends to pull the upper and lower longitudinal members 21 and 22 andnosepiece d5 downward, thereby tilting the upper end of the verticalaxle 53 forward and inclinng the plane of rotation of the horizontalrotor 54. The effect of so incliuing the plane of rotation is to reducethe rate of ascent of the kite, and thus to make it more stable underthe action of strong wind gusts. It has been observed in experimentationwith the kite in this configuration that the invention is not subject toviolent upwind and downwind motion, even in high winds.

When it is desired to bring the kite back down to the ground, it ismerely necessary to reel in the line 48 and the kite will settle backdown on its landing gear with the strut 74 and 75 again supporting it.

Obviously many other modifications and variatons of the presentinvention may be made within the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A helicopter kite comprising a fuselage having upper and lowerlongitudinal members joined at their rear ends and connected at theirforward ends by a curved nosepiece, transverse spaced members connectedto said upper and lower longitudinal members and covered with fabric toform the central portion of said fuselage, two angular struts extendingdownward and outward from said lower longitudinal member, the outer endsof said struts being bent upwardly, sheet material extending between theouter ends of said struts to form dihedral stablizing surfaces, bearingsformed in said upper and: lower longitudinal members within said centralfuselage section, a vertical axle mounted in said bearings, a hori-Izontal rotor mounted on said vertical axle and having a plurality ofblade shafts extending radially therefrom, a fixed blade mounted on theouter portion of each of said blade shafts anda movable blade portionmounted on the inner ends of each of said blade shafts and stop membersmounted on said blade shafts and engaging said movable blade portions tolimit movement thereof to an angle equal to or less than a boomextending upward and outward from the joined outer ends of saidlongitudinal members and a vertical rotor mounted for rotaton on the endof said boom said vertical rotor comprising a plurality of blade shaftswith a plurality of blades moveably mounted thereon and stop members onsaid blade shafts limiting movement of said moveable blades toapproximately 2. A helicopter kite comprising a fuselage having upperand lower longitudinal members joined at their rearward end andconnected at their forward end by acurved nosepiece, transverse spacedmembers connected to said upper and lower longitudinal members andcovered with fabric to form the central portion of said fuselage, twoangular struts extending downward and outward from said lowerlongitudinal member, bearfngs formed in said upper and lowerlongitudinal members within said central fuselage section, a verticalaxle mounted in said bearings, a horizontal rotor mounted on said axleand having a plurality of blade shafts extending radially therefrom, afixed blade mounted on the outer portion of each of said blade shaftsand a moveable blade mounted on the inner portion of each of said bladeshafts, and stop members mounted on said blade shafts and engaging saidmoveable blades to limit movement thereof to an angle less than 90, anda vertical rotor mounted for rotation on the rear ends of saidlongitud'nal members, said vertical rotor comprising a plurality ofblade shafts with a plurality of blades moveably mounted thereon andstop members on said blade shafts limiting movement of said last namedmoveably mounted blades to approximately 180.

3. A helicopter kite compris'ng a fuselage having upper and lowerlongitudinal members joined at their rearward end and connected at theirforward end by a curved nosepiece, transverse spaced members connectedto said upper and lower longitudinal members and covered with fabric toform the central portion of said fuselage, two angular struts extendingdownward and outward from said lower longitud'nal member, the outer endsof said struts being bent upward, sheet material extending between theouter ends of said struts to form dihedral stab'lizing surfaces,bearings formed in said upper and lower longitudinal mem-bers withinsaid central fuselage section, a vertical axle mounted in said bearings,a horizontal rotor mounted on said axle and having a plurality of bladeshafts extending radially therefrom, a fixed blade mounted on the outerportion of each of said blade shafts and a moveable blade mounted on theinner portion of each of said blade shafts, and stop members mounted onsaid blade shafts and engaging said moveable -blades to limit movementthereof to an angle less than 90, and a vertical rotor mounted forrotation on the rear ends of said longitudinal members, said verticalrotor comprising a plurality of blade shafts with a plurality of bladesmoveably mounted thereon and stop members on said blade shafts limitingmovement of said last named moveably mounted blades to approximately180.

4. A helicopter kite comprising a fuselage having upper and lowerlongitudinal members joined at their rearward end and connected at theirforward end by a curved nosepiece, transverse spaced members connectedto said upper and lower longitudinal members and covered with fabric toform the central portion of said fuselage, two angular struts extendingdownward and .outward from said, lower. longitudinal. member, `bearings"formed in 'said upper arid'lowerlongitudinal members within Vsaidcentral fuselage section, a vertical axle mountedfi'n 'said bearings,ahorizontal rotor mounted 'on Said axle and having a vplurality of bladeshafts Vextending radially therefrom, a xed blade mounted on Athe outerportion of each of saidblade shafts and a moveable blade 'mounted on theinner portion of each of said .blade Vshafts and stop members mounted-onsaid blade `shfts"arid engaging said 4moveableblades Ytol limitmovementtheref to an angle lessthan 90, a boom extend- Ving'upward and rearwardfrom the joined outer ends of lsaid longitudinal members and a verticalrotor mounted `forjrotation on the endof said boom said'vertical rotorcomprising a plurality ofY blade shafts with a plurality ofbla'des'moveably mountedthereon Yand stop members on Isai'd verticalrotor blade shafts :limiting movement .of V"said last named moveablymounted blades toapproximately 180V.

'5.fA.he1icopter kite as set forthin claim l wherein ka yinglineconnectorisslideablymounted on said curved nosepiecewherebythe angleof said vertical axle and the anglerof attaokoi said blades :on saidhorizontal. rotor are -move one tooth on said gear for each revolution,Va

threaded follower mountedlon said threaded .shaft and positioned torelease .said latch, and a guide engaging said follower to preventrotation thereof and move said .follower on said shaft to engage andrelease said latch after a predetermined number of revolutions of said1-5 horizontal rotor.

References Cited in the tile of this patent 'UNITED STATES PATENTS '.202,781,989 VHagood etal Feb. 19, 1957 2,893,663 'Wilson July '7, 1959'3,022,967 Romeo Feb. 27, 1962

2. A HELICOPTER KITE COMPRISING A FUSELAGE HAVING UPPER AND LOWERLONGITUDINAL MEMBERS JOINED AT THEIR REARWARD END AND CONNECTED AT THEIRFORWARD END BY A CURVED NOSEPIECE, TRANSVERSE SPACED MEMBERS CONNECTEDTO SAID UPPER AND LOWER LONGITUDINAL MEMBERS AND COVERED WITH FABRIC TOFORM THE CENTRAL PORTION OF SAID FUSELAGE, TWO ANGULAR STRUTS EXTENDINGDOWNWARD AND OUTWARD FROM SAID LOWER LONGITUDINAL MEMBER, BEARINGSFORMED IN SAID UPPER AND LOWER LONGITUDINAL MEMBERS WITHIN SAID CENTRALFUSELAGE SECTION, A VERTICAL AXLE MOUNTED IN SAID BEARINGS, A HORIZONTALROTOR MOUNTED ON SAID AXLE AND HAVING A PLURALITY OF BLADE SHAFTSEXTENDING RADIALLY THEREFROM, A FIXED BLADE MOUNTED ON THE OUTER PORTIONOF EACH OF SAID BLADE SHAFTS AND A MOVEABLE BLADE MOUNTED ON THE INNERPORTION OF EACH OF SAID BLADE SHAFTS, AND STOP MEMBERS MOUNTED ON SAIDBLADE SHAFTS AND ENGAGING SAID MOVEABLE BLADES TO LIMIT MOVEMENT THEREOFTO AN ANGLE LESS THAN 90*, AND A VERTICAL ROTOR MOUNTED FOR ROTATION ONTHE REAR ENDS OF SAID LONGITUDINAL MEMBERS, SAID VERTICAL ROTORCOMPRISING A PLURALITY OF BLADE SHAFTS WITH A PLURALITY OF BLADESMOVEABLY MOUNTED THEREON AND STOP MEMBERS ON SAID BLADE SHAFTS LIMITINGMOVEMENT OF SAID LAST NAMED MOVEABLY MOUNTED BLADES TO APPROXIMATELY180*.